The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/998618
66 ■ THE WOLVERINE 2018 FOOTBALL PREVIEW RUNNING BACKS 66 ■ THE WOLVERINE 2018 FOOTBALL PREVIEW RUNNING BACKS PLAYER BIOS POSITION COACH Jay Harbaugh is in his fourth sea- son with the Wolverines, and his second as the team's running backs coach and assistant special teams coordinator. He has been around football his entire life — his dad, Jim, is Michi- gan's head coach, and his uncle, John, is in the NFL leading the Baltimore Ravens. In his first year coaching the ball carriers, Harbaugh saw three of his running backs average 5.0 yards per carry or better and ran for more than 500 yards each, marking the first time since 1991 that three or more backs reached that figure. In addition, the Wolverines also ran for more than 2,000 yards as a team for the third straight season. Harbaugh also served as U-M's tight ends coach in 2015 and 2016. In his first season in that position, he guided a group that accounted for 72 catches, 926 receiving yards and three touchdown grabs. The crew also produced an All-American in Jake Butt, who won the Mackey Award as the country's best at the posi- tion as a senior in 2016. Harbaugh spent the three seasons prior to coming to Michigan under his uncle's tutelage, including the 2014 season as an offensive quality control coach focusing on statistical analysis, self-scouting reports and breakdowns of opposing defenses. He was also part of the Baltimore Ravens coaching staff that won Super Bowl XLVII in 2013, beating his father's San Francisco 49ers team. Harbaugh spent four seasons as an undergraduate assistant at Oregon State under head coach Mike Riley. The Beavers played in two bowl games during Harbaugh's tenure (2008-11), including a win in the 2008 Sun Bowl. Harbaugh also interned for the San Francisco 49ers in the scouting department during the summer of 2011. A native of San Diego, he holds a bachelor's degree in sociology from Oregon State. RETURNING PLAYERS CHRIS EVANS • RB Jr. • Indianapolis Ht.: 5-11 • Wt.: 206 Career Highlights: Honorable mention All-Big Ten pick by the coaches in 2017 … Earned Big Ten Co-Offensive Player of the Week af- ter registering a career-high 191 yards and two scores in a win over Minnesota … Totaled 685 rushing yards on 135 carries and six touchdowns … Also hauled in 16 passes for 157 yards and a touchdown … Played in all 13 games in 2016 … Made one start as a slot receiver … Carried the ball 88 times for 614 yards and four touchdowns … Joined Walter Cross (1998) and Chris Perry (2000) as the only U-M backs to eclipse 100 rushing yards in college debut, he totaled 112 yards. Prep: Caught 128 passes for 1,628 yards, rushed for 2,895 yards and scored 59 total touchdowns in his career … Secured 40 passes for 511 yards and four touchdowns as a senior, while rushing 188 times for 1,115 yards and 15 touchdowns … Ranked as a three- star recruit, the No. 7 player in Indiana and the No. 32 athlete in the nation by Rivals.com. Personal: Born Oct. 5, 1997 … Played on an AAU basketball team with U-M quarterback Brandon Peters … Evans' uncle, Richard, performed in the NFL for both the Rams and Titans. Year GP/GS Att. Yds. Avg. TD 2016 13/1 88 614 7.0 4 2017 13/2 135 685 5.1 6 Totals 26/3 223 1,299 5.8 10 KARAN HIGDON • RB Sr. • Sarasota, Fla. Ht.: 5-10 • Wt. 190 Career Highlights: Has played in 28 games with eight starts dur- ing his career … Played in all 13 contests in 2017, amassing 164 carries, 994 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns … Registered career highs in both attempts (25), yards (200) and touchdowns (three) at Indiana Oct. 14 … Matched his career high with 200 rushing yards in a win over Minnesota Nov. 4. … Saw action in 12 games in 2016, carrying the ball 72 times for 425 yards and six scores … Ran for 19 yards on 11 attempts in three appearances in 2015 … Made his college debut against Northwestern, carrying the ball eight times for 16 yards. Prep: Ran for 1,471 yards and 16 touchdowns his final two years of high school … Posted 565 yards as a senior, when he was limited to six games due to injury … Averaged 6.7 yards per carry over the course of his career at Riverview High School … Rivals.com listed him as a three-star recruit, Florida's No. 77 senior and the nation's No. 45 running back. Personal: Born Sept. 8, 1996 … Enrolled in the Col- lege of Literature, Science and the Arts. Year GP/GS Att. Yds. Avg. TD 2015 3/0 11 19 1.7 0 2016 12/0 72 425 5.9 6 2017 13/8 164 994 6.1 11 Totals 28/8 247 1,438 5.8 17 BEN MASON • FB So. • Newtown, Conn. Ht.: 6-3 • Wt.: 251 Career Highlights: Saw action in 13 contests as a true freshman in 2017… Received the team's Tough- est Player award. Ben Mason came to Michigan as a linebacker, but played in all 13 games as a true freshman fullback in 2017 and earned the team's Toughest Player award. PHOTO BY PER KJELDSEN